itt and I almost don’t know how to feel about it. This is the longest stretch of time I’ve ever been away from home, and I’ve never been in such a small environment with so many people. I started the year feeling completely out of my element, with the freedom to do just about anything I wanted – within reason – but also with the burden of the consequences that would come from doing anything I wanted. I was a blank slate, a new woman; gone were the embarrassing stories from middle school that people continued to reference until I graduated high school. I could be anything, I could do anything, and I wanted to do everything.
My first semester I was more extroverted than I’d ever been in my life. I tried to be friends with everyone and be involved in all sorts of activities. I signed up for basically everything I could, and I was running on the high of being in a new place with no enforced bedtime. I could go to parties… but not drink because I am still a minor and that is illegal, and I am a strict follower of the law. Never drank. Never.
Anyways.
My second semester was different; I had calmed down considerably in my ambitions and began to root out the extracurriculars I wasn’t that interested in and began to stick with the ones that I truly enjoyed. I started to find my real friends and learned that there were some people I needed to avoid. Despite all the relationship building I did, I started to feel lonely. I was homesick, I missed having good food and the peace and quiet of home. When I visited home for Easter, it was more difficult to go back to school than it had been any of the other times in the year.
I learned a lot my first year here at Witt. I learned what professors to avoid and where the best places to eat were. I learned about ordering a gluten free pizza from Domino’s at one in the morning, and how to effectively do homework in almost any context. I learned about secret societies, about the Greek life on campus and about all the people who were incredibly passionate about what they were doing at Wittenberg. And I learned that it was okay to not be okay sometimes. I could break down and cry, take some time off and everyone was accepting of it because they had been in the same boat. I learned that we’re all in this crazy college ride together, and I’m glad I’m doing it at Witt.
There are so many people here with amazing goals and ambition, and I am so inspired by those people. Being in a new place that gives everyone the chance to make a difference and live up to their full potential absolutely pumps me up for my next three years at Witt.
